Caught in the Crossfire

After everything that happened, Ashton thought she would have had PTSD or some form of night terrors, but most nights she slept like a baby. Harry told her that it was because she had tried to block everything out, and she thought that sounded somewhat reasonable. She thought that it was because she had Harry there to keep her safe.

Honestly, she couldn’t believe that after all the fighting and games that she and Harry played with each other, something would have actually happened, but it did. One second, he was yelling at her for getting in the line of fire and not staying safe, and then next he had scooped her into his arms and was making her promise never to leave him.

Even now, so long after that tragic day, she could still hear his voice and the words he spoke, and anytime she was sad or lonely, she just thought about those words. Luckily, that didn’t happen too often, because Harry now spent most of his time working in his lab, where Ashton could easily find him if she needed him.

Every time he went down in that hole to focus on one of his projects, Ashton would go out on the balcony and look out at the ocean for what felt like hours. That way, it was easier to pretend like they hadn’t been changed, because the ocean was so peaceful that you could just get lost in it.

That balcony was her home in the same way that Harry’s lab was to him. She loved the feeling of the saltwater tickling her nose and the wind blowing through her hair, and most of all she loved when Harry snuck up behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist, pulling her close to him.

Ashton stood out on the balcony, the sea wrapping around her mind, as she waited for one of those perfect moments. Harry had spent the last few nights locked in his lab, piecing together some new shield, and Ashton was just dying to have him finish it, so he would come back to her until another idea lit up in his mind.

Wrapping her hands around the banister, Ashton took a deep breath, and she felt the familiar warmth of Harry’s fingers dancing on the exposed skin on her back. She spun around, a large smile on her face, and looked up into his emerald eyes. He looked back at her and she melted, while his hands held tightly onto her hips.

“I’ve missed you,” he whispered, pressing his forehead against hers. He felt warm and sweaty, and she could tell that he’d been working long and hard.

“I missed you.”

He smiled again, batting his eyes so his eyelashes rubbed against hers. She wondered how long he was going to stay like that, just looking at her, and before she could ask he leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss against her lips.

“You know you can come into the lab whenever you like,” he said, his warm breath hitting her lips as he spoke.

Ashton chuckled. “You would kill me if I touched any of your things.”

Harry smiled at her, running a hand through her windblown hair. “You can look, but you can’t touch.”

Ashton smirked at him, while he pressed a finger to the apple of her cheek.

“Same goes for you, Mr. Styles.”